Simple Errand
by TotalCSIfan
Summary: When Jackie goes out for a simple errand things take a horrifying turn! Please read and review!
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I own nothing of CSI

Simple Errand

Nick sat on the floor playing with the kids, he was blowing raspberries on Nora's tummy and Nora giggled like crazy.

A few minutes later Jackie walked in the door.

"Mama." They all said happily as they ran at her.

"Hi guys." She greeted them with a smile.

"Honey are fast food tacos ok for dinner tonight?" She asked Nick.

"Sure, fine with me, want me to go get them?"

"No, that's ok, I'll go, I was going to stop on the way home from work but I decided that I really had to use the bathroom and I'd rather go through the drive through then go into the restaurant to get the tacos so I decided to come home first."

Jackie used the bathroom and then left to go get dinner.

She came back later.

The kids again ran at her to welcome her home but instead of greeting them she just stared straight ahead of her, not even acknowledging the kids.

"Jacks, you ok? You look like you saw a ghost." Nick said noticing her odd behavior.

She didn't answer or acknowledge him either.

"Kids go play upstairs in your rooms ok?" Nick told them so they would leave, clearly something was wrong and he didn't think the kids needed to witness this.

"Jackie, what's wrong?" He asked as he got off the floor and went over to her.

She still didn't say a word as he led her over to the couch.

"Honey what's the matter?" He asked again, he was now freaking out.

"The restaurant just got robbed by two men, one of them stole my wedding ring."

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

"Oh my God, are you alright?" He asked as he gave her a once over.

She didn't say anything, she just still stared straight ahead.

"Jacks, are you alright, honey, tell me what happened?"

"I, he, I." She stuttered.

"It's ok, you're safe now." He told her as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder.

They sat like that for several minutes.

When her breathing finally returned to normal she took a deep breath.

"I was going to go through the drive through but there was a long line so I decided to go in. I had just ordered and was waiting for my food when two guys came in with guns. One ordered me and all the other customers which was just three elderly gentleman into a corner while the other robbed the clerks. The guy that ordered me and the others into a corner demanded that we stay quiet and that we hand over all of our jewelry and money. I gave the guy the ten dollars in cash I had and my wedding ring. I'm sorry Nicky, I didn't want to but I was so scared and I wanted to get home to our babies, and you, so I just did it, I'm sorry, so sorry." She said as she then started sobbing.

"Hey, Jacks, you did the right thing, the ring doesn't matter, _you_ matter, I'll replace the ring, I promise, but I'd never be able to replace _you_." He said as he squeezed her shoulders and kissed her forehead.

"I love you so much and I'm so grateful that you are safe." He said after a few minutes as they just continued to cling to each other.

"I love you too." She responded.

"Did anyone get hurt?" He asked after she had calmed down.

"No, thank god. Thanks to the quick-thinking clerk that hit the emergency button under the counter the police got their quick, but as soon as the guys heard the police sirens they took off out the back door and got away. The police took our names and information and they had us tell them what they stole from us and they promised us that they would do everything they could to get our things back to us but they didn't look very hopeful, I don't think I'll ever get my ring back."

TBC


	3. Chapter 3

"I'm sorry honey, I know how much that ring means to you, but I promise you I'll replace it alright?" He repeated

She nodded.

"I still have my class ring and the ring my dad gave me, and the ring I bought myself as a reward when I graduated college. The other day at work I hit my right hand really hard on the door in my classroom and I have a huge bruise on my hand now, and when I had the rings on they touched the bruise and it hurt so I took them off."

"That's good." He told her with a bright smile as he smoothed a hair out of her face.

"Why did your dad get you a ring again?" Nick asked.

"When I was a little girl, like ten or so my dad got a reward at work, for his reward he got to pick a prize out of a booklet that his company had. He didn't like anything in there for himself so he let me pick out a ring. I hardly ever take it off. Other than my wedding ring it's my favorite piece of jewelry because my dad chose to get me something instead of for himself even though he was the one that earned the reward at work." She told him with a smile.

"I'm so glad you still have it." Nick told her sincerely.

Just then Nora squealed in Nick's lap, snapping the couple out of their brief trance.

Jackie smiled at the infant and took her from Nick's lap.

"Hi sweet baby girl." Jackie cooed at the baby.

She got up off the couch and carried Nora up the stairs so she could check on the other kids. She found them all in Jasmine's room, coloring in their coloring books on the floor.

 _I might have lost something that is very important to me but I'm still here with my precious children and my amazing husband, and that is way more important than any piece of jewelry_. She thought to herself as she watched the kids for a few moments.

TBC


	4. Chapter 4

A few days later Nick got a call from Brass, a day shift officer just had told Brass that they had caught the robbers, they were caught on surveillance video and their prints were all over the restaurant so thankfully Jackie didn't have to go pick them out of a lineup, Nick didn't want her to go through that.

Nick wanted to go talk to the perps to see if by some miracle if he could get Jackie's ring back, but he didn't want to tell Jackie because he didn't want to get her hopes up. He wanted to try to get her original one back even though the previous day he had bought her a new one, she didn't know that yet though, he'd planned on giving it to her last night but the kids wore her out and she had fallen asleep on the couch.

"Honey, I have to run to the lab for a bit, Greg just called and asked if I'd help him with his case." He fibbed.

"Ok, be safe, I love you." She told him.

"I love you too." He responded before kissing her and then heading out the door.

"I want to talk to them Jim." Nick insisted.

"Fine, but Nicky, don't do anything stupid." Brass told him.

"Fine." Nick agreed. Nick walked into the interrogation room where one of the suspects, the one that had robbed Jackie and the elderly gentleman was.

"Hi Todd, my name is Nick Stokes, I'm a crime scene investigator. The woman that you pointed a gun at and made her crouch down in a corner, the woman whose wedding ring you stole, was my wife." Nick said with steely eyes.

All of the color drained out of the suspects face.

"Where is my wife's ring?" Nick demanded.

"Look you can get it back, I still have it in my car." He said quickly, talking so fast he almost tripped over his own words.

Nick felt a surge of hope but he didn't get all that excited yet, after all the guy he was talking too wasn't exactly a stand up citizen.

" I don't like it when people lie to me." Nick said, almost in a growl.

"I'm not lying, I swear, it's in the jockey box in my car in a plastic bag."

Within moments two officers headed for his house.

They came back a bit later, Nick was still in the interrogation room with the suspect.

 _Please tell me they found it_ Nick thought to himself as the two officers came into the interrogation room.

One of them laid a plastic bag on the table in front of Nick, Nick's heart leapt when he saw there was a ring inside of it.

His heart dropped though as he opened the bag and gently dropped the gorgeous diamond ring into the gloved palm of his right hand.

"This isn't my wife's ring." He said.

TBC


	5. Chapter 5

The suspect looked genuinely surprised.

"Are you sure?" He asked.

"Yes I'm sure you idiot, I know what my wife's ring looks like, I'm the one who gave it to her." He snapped.

"Is this the right one CSI Stokes?" One of the officers asked Nick as he handed Nick another bag with another ring inside of it.

Nick again opened the bag and tipped it over, catching the ring in his hand.

He looked at it and breathed a huge sigh of relief.

"Yes, this one is hers." He confirmed.

"Who does the other ring belong to?" one of the officers asked.

"That must belong to the lady I robbed a couple weeks ago outside the grocery store." Todd told him and then immediately hung his head, he knew he had said way too much.

Nick's eyes narrowed at him.

"You better start talking."


	6. Chapter 6

"A couple weeks ago I robbed a lady behind a convenience store, I didn't hurt her and the only thing I took from her is her ring."

Nick left the lab a short time later, leaving the investigation up to Brass and dayshift.

He went home.

Later that night after the kids had been put to bed Jackie got in her pajamas and got in bed herself. She opened her book and began to read. Nick got in bed next to her moments later.

"Jacks?" He said.

"Hmmm?" She said as she closed her book and looked at him.

"I got you something." He said as he held a small ring box in his hand.

Jackie smiled at him and opened the ring box and gasped. Inside the box there was a gorgeous emerald shaped diamond solitaire yellow gold engagement ring. The diamond had to be at least a karat and a half. Emerald shaped diamonds were Jackie's absolute favorite shape of diamonds, had Nick known that he would have gotten her an emerald shaped engagement ring for her original one. Soldered to the engagement ring was a plain yellow gold band, just how Jackie likes it.

"Honey, it's gorgeous, I love it, but it must have cost a fortune!"

"It wasn't too bad." He assured her with a smile.

She reached over and took the ring out of the box and slid it on her ring finger. It looked absolutely stunning and over time she hoped she would come to love it as much as she loved her original one.

"Thank you so much! I love it." She told him as she leaned over and gave him a kiss.

"I'm glad." He told her with a beaming smile.

She looked at the ring, she had to admit it looked good on her finger. She then got back to her book.

She had read just one paragraph when Nick said her name again.

She looked over at him again. He held yet another ring box and after he had gotten her attention he opened the box. She gasped as tears welled in her eyes and then started streaming down her face.

" _My_ ring, my original ring, how did you get it back?" She asked as she gently took off her new one.

"Day shift caught the guys that committed the robbery, your ring was still in one of the idiot's cars."

She reached over to grab her ring but Nick pulled the box back.

"Here, let me." He said as he took the ring out of the box and slid it on her finger.

"What are you going to do with the new ring, and why did you buy me a new one if you got my old one back?" She asked.

"I bought the new one before your old one was recovered."

"Oh." She answered.

"And I'll take the other one back." He told her.

"Can you do that? I don't think they'll give you your money back."

"Well when I was looking for a new ring I just went to different jewelry stores. Do you know the new jewelry store on Hayward Boulevard?"

"I've heard of it but I haven't been in it."

"Well I decided to go look in there and the store happened to be owned by a high school football teammate and friend of mine. I told him what happened to you. I asked him if he had any emerald shaped diamond yellow gold engagement rings and he had a few. The one I bought was my favorite but it was $7,000. I told him I couldn't afford it and he said that he felt really bad about what happened to you, he let me buy it for only $1,000. He also said that if by some chance we got your other one back that I could bring this one back and he would give me a complete refund."

"Wow that was so nice of him! When you go take it back I want to go with you so I can personally thank him alright?"

"Sure." He answered.

Jackie went to sleep that night completely over the moon about getting her ring back. Nick thought that this entire horrible ordeal was over but as he would later find out it wasn't.

TBC…

*Note-The new ring Nick got Jackie was not emerald colored, it was emerald shaped, so it was a white diamond. Ladies out there if you don't know what an emerald shaped diamond looks like you should look them up, they are gorgeous! They are my favorite, and Jackie's too! Just a tidbit for you!


	7. Chapter 7

Jackie went about her normal routines for the next several days, she didn't go out much except to go to work but during the week that wasn't so unusual thanks to her job and her own kids.

Nick thought it would be nice to take her out without the kids so he could talk to her at length and make sure she was coping ok. She seemed to be but he wanted to make sure.

Jackie's mom agreed to watch the kids for a bit but Jackie didn't want to be gone too long because it was a school night for her and the kids.

Jackie wanted to go to the burger joint not far from their house, Nick agreed, he wasn't picky and he loved hamburgers.

Jackie seemed fine, although every time someone would come into the restaurant she would glance at them.

Nick ignored that fact, but perhaps he shouldn't have because he was in the middle of asking how her day at work went when suddenly she dove under the table. Nick immediately dove under there with her.

"Honey, what's wrong?"

"That man at the counter is reaching into his back pocket, I think he's pulling a gun."

Nick glanced at the counter, the man was pulling nothing more than his wallet out of his pocket.

"Sweetheart, he's just getting his wallet so he can pay for his food." He assured her as he laid a comforting hand on her shoulder.

Jackie glanced at the counter, Nick was right, the man was doing absolutely nothing wrong.

Jackie then glanced around the restaurant, mostly everyone in there was staring at her.

"Take me home." She said, barely above a whisper as hot tears stung her eyes.

She was embarrassed and ashamed.

Nick offered her a gentle smile and then he helped her up. He took her hand and led her out of the restaurant and into his truck.

"I'm sorry, Nicky." She told him after they had both gotten in. He gently took her hand.

"You have absolutely nothing to be sorry for." He assured her as he gave her hand a gentle squeeze.

She gave him a slight smile of gratitude in return. They sat in silence a few minutes before Nick finally broke it.

"You know, after my kidnapping, I was scared of everything, I had flashbacks, frequent nightmares, I didn't want to leave the house. This went on until a very kind, caring, compassionate, and beautiful woman told me that there was no shame in admitting that I couldn't deal with it on my own and that talking to a professional counselor might very well be the step I need to take to heal."

"What was the very kind, caring, compassionate, and beautiful woman's name?" Jackie asked with a teasing smile.

"I don't remember, it's been a number of years." He replied with a wide grin.

She laughed softly.

He grew serious again as he gave her hand another squeeze.

"However, I do remember that the woman promised she would be at every counseling session with me. She didn't break that promise, she was at every session, sitting right beside me, and I would love to return the favor." He said as he looked her square in the eye.

Jackie saw absolutely no sign of judgement or disappointment in his eyes, the only things she saw were understanding, compassion, and pure love.

Her eyes welled with tears.

"Ok, I'll go." She told him softly as she nodded her head yes.

He reached across the seat and took her in his arms.

"I'm so glad to hear you say that." He whispered as he stroked her hair.

The tears that were in her eyes fell down her cheeks and spilled onto Nick's shirt.

"You're going to get through this, you're going to be ok, and I'm going to be right there to make sure of it." He promised.

"Thank you."

Nick pulled back slightly so he could see her face. He gently wiped a tear off of her cheek and then gave her forehead a tender kiss.

When Jackie looked into his eyes she had no doubt in her mind that he meant every word of what he had just said. She knew she'd be ok and she knew that Nick would be there with her every step of the way, no matter what it took or how long it took!

The End!


End file.
